Amanda let out a gasp as she tried to reach out for something to grab onto and nearly fell.
Hudson woke up and caught her before she could hit the floor.
“Amanda, are you okay? What’s wrong?” he asked her as he helped her sit on the bed.
He walked over to the mini fridge, pulled out a bottle of water, and opened it before he handed it to her.
“Here, drink this.”
Amanda grabbed the bottled water from Hudson and took a drink. When she opened her eyes she was relieved to see that she was in her room and not that cold, dark place.
What was that? She asked herself.
“Amanda?”
She looked up at Hudson and saw his eyes were filled with concern.
She took a deep breath and started, “I woke up from a bad feeling and got up to look outside at the night sky, hoping that would calm me down. I started to hear whispering and panicked but my wolf was able to calm me down and guided me. I think I saw a vision or something.”
“What was the vision?”
Amanda’s eyebrows furrowed as she closed her eyes and tried to remember what she had seen. The room was dark, but the person felt familiar to her. As the pieces started to fall into place, Amanda’s eyes popped wide open. She looked up at Hudson and said, “I think I saw Vita.”
“Vita? Did you see anything else? Something that could help us find her?” Hudson asked with vigor.
Amanda shook her head.
Hudson slumped but smiled at his mate,
“Let’s go back to bed. There’s nothing we can do right now. Maybe we’ll hear something in the morning.”
*******
Zachary was asleep in the front parlor room at Vita’s house when he heard a howl come from outside. He rolled off the couch and rushed out the window to take a peek outside.
Deak was walking up to the front porch, with a smile on his face and covered in dirt.
Zachary quickly opened the door and let him inside the house.
Deak had a few scratches and bruises but nothing too terrible. It looked like he was already starting to heal from most of his wounds.
“What do the other guys look like?” Zachary asked as he closed the door and followed Deak into the kitchen.
Deak flashed Zachary his devilish grin.
“They’re not dead,” he answered with a shrug.
“Did you get any of them to talk?” Zachary asked as he threw him a towel that he found in the laundry room next to the kitchen.
“There were too many to stop and question.”
“What pack do you think they were from?”
“No idea,” he answered as he started to clean himself up in the sink.
“Maybe you should go and take a shower.”
“In the moment. Were you followed?” Deak asked him.
Zachary shook his head.
There was a knock on the front door.
Zachary and Deak both looked at each other, their eyes filled with confusion. Who would be knocking on the door at this hour?
Deak took a sniff and then smiled.
“You’re in trouble,” he sang out to Zachary.
“Zachary Mathias Warren, open this door right now!” Ruby yelled.
Zachary’s eyes widened and the feeling of dread filled him as he walked over to the door and opened it.
Ruby was standing there with her arms crossed, tapping her foot.
“You’ve got a lot of explaining to do!” she yelled as he walked into the house.
Zachary sighed as he listened to the woman he loved to yell and scream throughout the house.
He jumped when he heard a voice he hadn’t heard in some time.
“Hello, Zachary.”
He turned back to the front porch and saw his mother standing there, waiting to be let in.
“Mother, what are you doing here?” he asked her as he motioned for her to come in.
Madeline let out a sigh as she took in the house around her.
“It’s been years since I have been here. Glad to see Vita kept a lot of the same decor,” she said.
“Yes, that’s great. But you still haven’t answered my question. What are you doing here?” he asked again.
“I heard about Amanda being the hybrid and have come to help.”
Zachary was shocked to hear his mother knew about Amanda.
“How did…”
“I still have contacts that keep me well informed on what’s been happening near my old hometown,” she answered.
“I also filled her in on some details as well,” Ruby huffed.
It was clear to Zachary that it was going to take a while before Ruby calmed down and stopped being mad at him.
Madeline looked over at the half-naked male that stood in the room.
“And this is?”
Ruby answered, “This is Deak. he’s who I told you about.”
Madeline walked up to Deak, looking him up and down. Sizing him up. It didn’t faze Deak at all; he was used to it.
“You have your mother’s eyes,” she told him.
The cocky smile he usually wore was wiped away when he heard the woman talk about his mother.
Deak nodded.
“I do.”
Madeline ran her hand up, down, and around Deak’s body, never once touching him. “You carry power too,” she informed him.
Deak let out a sigh.
“It will take some time for you to learn it, but yes, I feel great power from you,” she said with a smile, but then it disappeared to a look of concern.
“You are in constant battle with yourself. Your Lycan wolf is very strong. But you are stronger. Your mother was a dear friend to me. I will be happy to help you in any way that I can.”
Deak was at a loss for words. For so long he had felt alone, wanting to have some type of connection to his mother and her coven. And now, he was finally getting it.
“Koszonom (thank you),” he told her.
Madeline nodded.
She then turned back to her son.
“Well? What did you find out?” she asked formally.
“Vita wasn’t there. The place looked deserted until Deak caught the scent of wolves that were headed straight for the place,” Zachary explained as he rubbed his neck.
Madeline shook his head.
“I’m fine. Deak stayed behind while I was able to get away.”
Ruby let out another huff.
“Maybe if you had answered my phone calls, you wouldn’t have had to run out of there, and Deak wouldn’t have had to fight off those wolves,” Ruby replied.
Deak chuckled.
“Don’t bring me into the middle of your tiff. I enjoyed getting to take my pent-up frustration out on those wolves,” Deak responded.
He made his way through the front and headed up the stairs to shower and hopefully find something to wear.
Zachary looked over at Ruby with worried eyes.
Ruby wasn’t ready to let her worry and anger go.
“I’ll go and make us all something for breakfast. I’m sure everyone is hungry right about now,” she said as she stormed off into the kitchen.
Mated to my Bully (Book 1)